From June 25 to 27, 2025, the Association for the Surface Finishing of Aluminum e. V. and its members (VOA) gathered in Bad Neuenahr for a mix of insights into the technology and stimulating discussions. The aim is to jointly develop future prospects in order to make the industry more resilient.
The VOA kicked off the first day with its practical program for the meeting of the Technical Circle, i.e. the VOA's Technical Commission as the driving force and source of ideas for all technically interested members. The agenda included the Energy Efficiency Act and its practical application, presented by Tribicon GmbH, as well as theCO2 footprint using the practical example of NABU-Oberflächentechnik GmbH. The influence of EU policy on the surface finishing industry was also clearly demonstrated. Sandra Leuthold from the Federal Environment Agency, together with Marc-Steffen Hinderer from Hydro Extrusion Deutschland GmbH, spoke about the European and national work on the "BREF STM".
In the morning of the next day, VOA Chairman Friedhelm U. Scholten welcomed the participants to the internal part of the members' meeting. In the public part in the afternoon, Bad Neuenahr-Ahrweiler Mayor Guido Orthen welcomed the participants and expressed his pleasure at the support of the VOA and its members in driving the economy in the region forward.
This was followed by two presentations that underlined the importance of close networking and joint commitment: Andrea Stenz from the Koblenz Chamber of Industry and Commerce reported on the natural disaster in the Ahrthal and the economic development four years after the flood. In particular, she emphasized the solidarity of people from all over Germany with the affected local population and provided information about the sustainable, forward-looking activities in the region.
This was followed by Prof. Dr. Hubertus Bardt from the Cologne Institute for Economic Research (IW), who shed light on industrial value chains in Germany. The title of his presentation was "A world in transition - and Germany right in the middle of it". He discussed forecasts for Germany in 2025, the question of the turnaround in German industry, US tariffs, the development and prosperity gap in Germany and political uncertainty in the country. Here, the IW's assessment coincided with the data regularly collected by the VOA from its member companies, which the association records at least twice a year in its official status report.
Prof. Bardt also spoke about the concept of related diversity, which is about further developing existing strengths and adding new strengths. This strategy enables sustainable development and long-term success because the concept builds on existing resources while increasing the diversity of skills. The Chairman of the VOA thanked Prof. Bardt for the intensive insights and for pointing out the interesting concept.
The accompanying program for this year's general meeting also attracted numerous participants. In addition to the visit to the romantic Marienthal vineyard, the exciting excursion to the government bunker documentation site with its impressive history, secrets and anecdotes was particularly fascinating. They learned that the "most secret and most expensive building in the history of the Federal Republic of Germany" was more than 17 km long, was intended for 3,000 people, took ten years to build and would have been useless in the end. A fascinating original site of the Cold War that transported the members of the VOA back in time. After the tour, the event ended with a dinner in the elegant Baroque Hall of the Steigenberger Hotel.
This year's general meeting underlined once again how valuable it is to meet in person, to stand together in a time of change, to pool interests and to join forces to overcome challenges.
